All 9 sportspeople recommended for the Padma Awards are women

In an unprecedented first, the Sports Ministry has recommended nine names for the Padma Awards, all of whom are women! Leading the list is Mary Kom, six-time world boxing champion. Kom was previously awarded the Padma Shri in 2006 and the Padma Bhushan in 2013.

She has now been recommended for a Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian honour after the Bharat Ratna. Only three sportspeople have won the Padma Vibhushan prior to this – chess champ Viswanathan Anand, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary (posthumous).

The current darling of the nation, PV Sindhu, was awarded the Padma Shri in 2015 and was recommended for the Padma Bhushan in 2017, but failed to make the final list. She has been nominated for the same this year once again. Considering her feat at the Badminton World Championships, she’s bound to be a shoo-in!